Antz
Starring Woody Allen, Sharon Stone and Gene Hackman Directed By Eric Darnell and Lawrence Guterman Running Time: 1 hour 42 minutes.
(Dreamworks SKG)
Dreamworks latest picture, after Small Soldiers, is another children's flick. And again, like Small Soldiers, most of the gags will probably go right over your kids head. Woody Allen plays 'Z', a neurotic worker ant in a massive ant colony. By a chance encounter, he meets and falls in love with Princess Bala (voiced by Stone.) They split company, but Allen wants to meet her again, so he convinces a soldier ant voiced by Sylvester Stallone to swap places with him, so he has a better chance of meeting the princess again. However, he manages to get both himself and the princess in a variety of adventures in the outside world.
Like Toy Story (1995), Antz is completely computer generated by a company called PDI, and looks brilliant. The graphics are superb, witty and easy on the eye. There are literally hundreds of details in every scene. Although the ants look like they are made out of wood, they move and act perfectly. The voices behind the ants are excellent also. Woody Allen makes Z completely hilarious, and although his angst may seem slightly out of place in this movie, it's toned down from his previous work (although he somehow manages to get erotic fantasies into the script.) Stallone is also good, and the teamwork between Allen and Stallone is great, playing each other off perfectly. Gene Hackman and Christopher Walken as the evil Soldier leaders bring an edge to the movie, and Dan Ackroyd, John Mahoney, Jennifer Lopez (as Stallone's lady) and Danny Glover (good as an ill-fated soldier ant) all play a part in bringing to life the characters. The only weak link is Sharon Stone, who seems to give no effort to her performance. Being a major character in the film, this is slightly annoying to adults, although children will probably not care.
The film is directed well, although it is much easier to direct on computer when you have full control of what happening. The battle scenes are excellent, the romantic scenes are well handled and not too sickly, and the comedy is well done aswell. It's hard for a Woody Allen film not to be funny however (apart from Scenes From A Mall.) Also, the wild visuals always make sure that the film is a delight to watch. Although the script is occasionally cliched, and there's the occasionally slow bit, Antz will probably not be sending you to sleep.
The main flaw with the film, though, is that it's a little too adult for kids, but a tiny bit childish for adults. Woody Allen's comedy is really not for young ones, but the look and feel of the film is certainly aimed for children. There's also a smattering of bad language in there for no apparent reason, and Z talking about erotic fantasies is clearly out of place in this movie. Generally, however, Antz is an unexpected delight. A Bug's Life, the new film from Toy Story creators Pixar, has quite a bit too live up to. Worth a look.
RATING=***1/2 OUT OF *****
A David Wilcock Review ©1998
DAVID WILCOCK david.wilcock@btinternet.com Visit the Wilcock Movie Page! http://wilcockmovie.home.ml.org -OR- http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/9061 Recieve Wilcock Movie Page Reviews via E-MAIL Send a blank E-MAIL to wmp-reviews-subscribe@makelist.com to join the mailing list!
"You know, for kids"- Norville Barnes
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